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My Free Promotion Experience and Some Questions About "Free"

5/4/2012

7 Comments

 
I published my book The Sun Zebra in November of 2011. From that date to the time I did my first successful free promotion on April 11 (about 20 weeks) I promoted, e-mailed, tweeted, blogged, and whatnot but only managed to sell 27 copies of my book. That is 1.35 copies per week. This is an experience that many first authors go through. In fact, the rule of thumb used to be that self-published authors would sell on the average only 100 copies of their books. The best ranking my book ever achieved was 17,580 and from there it started sinking reaching a ranking of 500,000 on a couple of occasions. Every now and then a buy would send it “soaring” close to 100,000 after which it would start sinking again. Then along came Amazon’s KDP Select program, which allows authors to give away their book for free.

Here let me state that I did an early promotion that did not go well but then I introduced some changes to my book and marketing strategy, and I tried the promotion again. I gave my book away for free during 3 days. People downloaded 19,000 plus copies sending it as high as #9 in the free Kindle store. When the promotion ended it ranked #1,999 and in the 3 weeks since the promotion I have sold 170 copies with 46 units being borrowed, which (at a book price of $1.99) may count for 80 units or more. Even though I expected better results because my book and its cover are really good, it is a collection of short stories, and short stories are not a very popular category. This is why I think it did not gain further traction in the Kindle store. Other authors have had better experiences.

However, with the promotion I achieved in 3 weeks results that I had not achieved in the 4 plus previous months. Although even with these improved sales figures I will obviously not be quitting my day job anytime soon, the point is that with the KDP Select program Amazon has given no name self-published writers like me a powerful promotional tool; if we use it well.

My question is: for how long?

There are 140,000 books in the KDP Select program and more are being added all the time. Multiplying that by 5 gives you the number of free days these books represent. There is now an endless supply of free books on Amazon. Unless a reader cares about reading a series or about an author’s other works, it is possible for said reader to upload hundreds of books into his/her Kindle without spending a single cent. So far “free” seems to still work. People are downloading free books but they are still buying. In fact the sales of some well-known authors have actually been increased by the program. But can we expect this to go on forever?

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7 Comments
Irma
5/27/2012 07:34:09 pm

It's dismal, isn't it. On top of it, there are so many how-to instructions out there which make you think that you must be doing something wrong.
Thanks for your honesty. I think that a lot of writers won't publish their stats, for fear of sounding negative. I think that the media highlight successful people and we never hear about those who don't do well.
I tend to look at it this way: a writer in the Middle Ages had to have his book copied by hand and he'd probably be dizzy thinking of a number of putting out 100 copies.
Increased literacy has raised appreciation and skill in people, so writing is not a skill of an elect few any longer. But that does not depreciate the skill, nor the written piece, nor the readership.
Automation has put us into a position of indulging in our hidden talents and has put us out of menial work at the same time. But to think that we could make a living with 'our hobbies' isn't really feasible. I can't help feeling uneasy at the idea that somewhere out of the blue (or the internet) a new type of income generating activity will appear. Prosperity has always been created on the back of slaves and serfs.
I think it's time to distribute the wealth that automation creates to those it has put out of work, via a basic income. Then we can write to our heart's content.

Reply
Rolando link
5/28/2012 01:14:17 am

Thanks for your comment Irma. As to the "how too" instructions, I think they all depend on the writer. What works for one writer will not work for the next. And yes, the majority of authors will not do well in either traditional or self-publishing. As to making a living with our "hobbies" again it depends on the person and the circumstance. A few people have the vision to find a way where others thought nothing could be done. Those are the ones that get ahead. But the internet has created many business opportunities. I see this all over in e-Bay and in other internet outlets. But again, opportunity is not "neutral" it only favors the person that knows how to take advantage of it, and this talent is not widespread.

Reply
Irma
5/28/2012 05:57:42 pm

Pertinent reads. I guess it's the season. :))
http://www.timesargus.com/article/20120528/OPINION03/704219943
https://plus.google.com/u/0/108527329601014444443/posts/bXnehUt4FBP

Brian link
6/16/2012 10:12:47 am

Hey Rolando, This is good information. I appreciate the statistics and can see that your sales did improve, even though you gave away so many e-books. I just published my book and for now I will hold out against giving it away. Besides, I wanted to have it available for the Nook, Google, and my site too, which you can't do with Kindle Select. Best of luck to you with your sales!

Reply
Rolando link
6/28/2012 12:19:55 pm

Hey Brian, thanks for your comment and sorry for the late reply. I also thought about placing my books in as many outlets as possible but then I read that most authors have > 90% of their sales coming from Amazon. Therefore, especially if your time is limited, it pays to concentrate in promoting it here. Best of luck to you too!

Reply
Rob
7/13/2012 03:04:48 am

I had my book under KDP select for one day and it was downloaded 5,500 times. I got 40 sales the next day when it went up for sale and then the next day ZERO sales! Does anybody have any ideas as to why this happened?

Reply
Rolando link
7/13/2012 07:56:09 am

Thanks for your comment Rob. I wanted to ask you what ranking did you reach in the free kindle store, in your book's category, and right after the free promotion? Also, how many borrows did you get, what was the price of your book, and how did you promote it? Finally can you provide a link to your book's Amazon page? Thanks.

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